Ringing in 2015: Fresh starts, clean slates and all that jazz.

It's almost comical to look back on my post from last year at this time. I had grand plans to coast quietly into the New Year, create a peaceful little bubble around myself, be mindful in my daily interactions with the world, live a more "zen" life.

What's that they say ... if you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans? Yeah.

I never would have guessed I'd be where I am at the end of 2014. Early in the new year I was offered a part-time job and I've been working about 20 hours a week since early February. I love it. It's just enough for me to get out and see people, interact with adults, and feel useful. It's not a lot of money, but I can't beat a four-day work week and being close to where my kids are in school during the day. It had been six years since I worked regularly outside the home, but it was a relatively easy transition jumping back into the workforce.

At about the same time I started my new job I also started a Bible study with a great group of ladies. This was my first experience doing a group study and I can honestly say it has been life-changing. I'm excited to continue to grow my relationships with God and these godly women when we start another study in the new year.

With my heart and mind open to whatever direction God might steer me, toward the end of summer I was researching the possibility of transforming an old building down the street from our office into a new business - a farm stand where I would resurrect the city's weekend farmer's market, and sell fresh produce and maybe some other locally-made goods. Very quickly it went from "I wonder if we could make a go of this" to "holy cow, we're doing this!" So I'm looking at the first of the year looming and I am reminded that in three months I'll be mailing my first rent check and I get all tingly and excited and a little freaked out and I think if I was looking for life to slow down this was not the best avenue to travel.

HOWEVER. I have never experienced the type of happy I feel every time someone asks me to tell them about my plans for this business. There are moments of panic when I think I can never make it happen like I see it in my mind but then I remember that even if it's not perfect (and what is?) it will still be really awesome and I will be incredibly happy.

So 2015 will be an interesting year. I don't really know what to expect, except a lot of hard work. This is one of those instances when you don't know what you're capable of if you don't give it a try, so I'm going for it. It's a good time in our lives - as a couple and as a family - and I'm excited to see where this next year takes us.

Tonight we're saying goodbye to 2014 and celebrating Steve's and his brother's January 6 birthdays (same day, five years apart) with a huge bonfire, food, drinks and visiting with friends. I came in early because my toes were frozen. I might make it to midnight, but not much longer.

I asked Steve if he had any goals or resolutions for 2015. "Just more of being me," he said.

Twenty-some years together and the guy is still making me laugh. I adore him.

Here's to a healthy, happy, prosperous New Year for all of us. May you be blessed. Cheers!

New Year, fresh starts.

Holy smokes! It's been too long since I've posted. Certainly not because we've had nothing going on, though I can say we really did have a quiet, relaxing Christmas and New Year's Eve is shaping up the same way. Just how I like it.

Steve got home the afternoon of the 23rd and left again yesterday morning. He will be settled back in at his apartment in Colorado tonight. In the week he was home we packed in about as much good stuff as we could: visiting with friends, celebrating Christmas with family, relaxing at home - playing video games, target shooting, wrestling with the dogs, watching movies, cooking - and even attending a cousin's wedding reception.

If there is one thing this crazy life has taught me it is to embrace each day, especially during the times Steve and I and the kids are together as a family. Where once I had to force myself to live in the moment and not dwell on the fact that my sweetheart would be leaving again soon, it's not such a big deal to me anymore. I can enjoy myself for whatever time we have together, and while I might get a little down when he leaves it doesn't take long for me to fall back into the groove of everyday life. As we often say to each other ... it is what it is. This is our life and we live it the best way we know how.

Well, we try to. I guess there is always room for improvement. That's one of the exciting things about the start of a new year - the idea that we can say goodbye to the baggage we're still carrying from 2012 and improve on things that need improving in 2013.

I am not a fan of resolutions, though I do periodically set goals for myself. As I sit here on New Year's Eve, kids next door at Nana's and Papa's house, Steve back to work, and even the dogs doing their own thing, I might reflect a bit on the previous year but mostly I am looking ahead to 2013. I am hopeful. Confident. Happy. Thankful. The Pipe Lifers have been blessed with a good life, and I look forward to spending another year of it with the people I love.

Happy New Year.

Good news.

Steve made it safely to Colorado.

And it's payday Friday.

That is all.


***


Enjoy your weekend, and don't forget to turn your clocks back an hour Saturday night or you'll be way too early for church on Sunday morning.

Day by day.

Happy Halloween! Do you dress up? Have (or still have) kids in your house who do? This afternoon I will attend my last school Halloween party; next year when Rachel hits Middle School the parties will be a thing of the past. I'm ok with that. I've had my fun. I do love seeing all the kids dressed up, though. And we always have a hoot trick-or-treating ... though tonight I think it's going to be pretty cold and maybe raining, so I won't be sorry to see that over for the year, either.

Geesh, I'm just the life of the party, huh?

I'll actually be glad to have a little something to distract me this afternoon because at the moment I'm just sitting around, bummed out that Steve is already back on the road. He finished up his testing, got packed up and has already taken off for Colorado where his next job awaits. I'm sad. I get more sad every time we part. Steve is the love of my life and my best friend and I just love having him around. But I'm also so proud of him and the work that he does, and I try to do everything I can to support him from the homefront. We're hoping he will make it home for Thanksgiving, which is only three weeks away - very doable, we've certainly gone that long without seeing each other before - but for some reason it feels different this time ... I think because Steve is going to a place we aren't familiar with, and it's so much farther away than he has worked in recent years.

Anyway, that's the news for now. We take things day by day and look forward to being together as a family again. In the meantime the kids and I have much to do to keep us busy - basketball, bowling, Girl Scouts, school work, life in general - and of course, Halloween activities this afternoon and evening.

Boo! Be safe out there!

It's our anniversary!

He sent me roses! *swoon*

Fourteen years ago today it was much warmer outside.

It got so warm, in fact, that the white tulips in my bouquet opened so wide they didn't look like tulips anymore.

I didn't care. I was gettin' married.

Steve and I had our first date in June of '93 ... so altogether 19 years we've been together. It's funny now to think about how long we dated before he proposed to me. Five years felt like eternity! And now here we are.

So how have we lasted this long?

Off the top of my head ... love beyond measure. Forgiveness. Grace. Laughter. Trust. Encouragement. Leaning on God and each other.

And Steve's favorite: COMMUNICATION! *wink*

Marriage is awesome. Sometimes it's more work than it seems like it should be, but that's ok. Every storm we have weathered together has made us stronger as a couple, and as a family. Steve is my best friend. He makes me feel like a princess. I'm still so much in love with him, and looking forward to holding his hand as we grow old together.

Happy anniversary, baby.

Clean Slate Sunday: The end of Spring Break '12 edition

I'm happy. We had a wonderful week while Sam and Rachel were on spring break and Steve was home getting ready for the start of a new venture. I'm sure the kids would have liked to be a little busier, but I rather appreciated not traveling and being able to stick close to home.

Of course we waited until the last minute to get a few things done, so Steve and I got up early this morning and I helped him finish packing up the trailer. Mostly by saying, "Don't forget to take (fill in the blank)" and sipping coffee so I wouldn't fall asleep in the middle of Pastor Bill's sermon today.

It was a nice week of reconnecting and reminiscing, and I'm still a little giddy at the idea that we will see Steve again in a few days. We might get to see him every weekend until the kids are out of school for summer, if all goes well. We're all pretty excited about that. It's the little things, I tell ya'.

Steve and my dad and my brother Jim will be working together. Again. They headed out this morning to their home-away-from-home base in southern Michigan, having the trailers set up and the job site checked out by the time I talked to Steve again this evening.

Handsome trio, aren't they? 

Dad, Steve, Jimmy.

They're a force to be reckoned with, these guys. I'm pretty proud of all of 'em.

Tomorrow begins a new week. Kids go back to school. Steve back to work. Me back to ... everything I do. Have a blessed week.

Quiet.

It's been pretty quiet here this week. The kids are on spring break and we don't have anything going on. Well, we have plenty to do, but not really any commitments, if that makes sense.

We've visited with friends, slept in, chilled out, and generally enjoyed having some time with Steve home. Sam stayed the night with my folks last night, which gave me and Rachel a chance to have a date night with daddy. The three of us went to the movies. This afternoon we took Rachel to my mom and dad's and brought Sam home and now he and Steve are duking it out on the PS3. I'm thinking it's a good time for me to settle in with a book and something hot to drink, as the summer-like weather we had a week ago has turned back to something a little more typical (read: COLD).

Steve is preparing this week to start his new job on Monday - he's had some work done on his truck, took a drug test, is working through some on-line training courses, and has a stack of paperwork to fill out. He'll also be loading up the travel trailer and taking that when he leaves Sunday. Hooray for the end of hotel season!

It's been so nice having Steve here. I say the same thing every time we're together as a family, and it's true. I appreciate our time together more than ever. This last stint with him working in Pennsylvania was tough for all of us. Steve was in an area with really crappy cell phone coverage and there were days when we didn't talk at all because of it. What makes this crazy lifestyle of ours bearable is technology - the ability to be in constant contact with each other through phone calls, texts, e-mails. When we don't have that, it's tough. And the distance ... well, it's not like we can take a quick weekend trip to see daddy when he's a 12-hour drive away. Starting next week he'll be in southern Michigan, much closer to home, and I can't tell you how excited I am about that. I can't wait for summer.

Even though we have nothing on the schedule the week seems to be flying by, as it always does when our time with daddy is limited. Tonight I'm just gonna' settle in and enjoy, and try not to think too much about next week when we'll all be back to the grind.

Monday. And there is much to do.

Poor Ladybug is so confused. Daddy was here and now he's gone. The kids were here, now gone. And I'm not always here, but here I am today. And I'm buzzing around the house, cleaning and straightening and tripping over her because she is hot on my heels. When she's not following me around she's sitting in a chair by the window keeping watch.

 See?

I feel for her. The last few days have been a bit of a whirlwind and we're all out of our usual routine. It was so nice, as always, to have Steve home. He hit the road around 4 this morning to go back to PA. I imagine it will be spring break before we see him again. Boo. Sad face. Sad, sad face.

The good news is we definitely made the most of his time here. At the last minute we decided to take Rachel to a local hotel with a pool and water slide because that's what she wanted for her birthday - to swim. Actually she wanted a big ol' par-tay by the pool, but she settled for inviting one friend for one night at the hotel, eating out at her place of choice (that's kind of our birthday tradition) and cupcakes in the hotel room. Her birthday is tomorrow and she will turn 10. Ten big ones. Hardly seems possible. I'll bake a cake and we'll do a little something special for her tomorrow evening, too. Today is all about catching up on the stuff I ignored while Steve was here ... the usual: laundry, dishes, bills, and general housekeeping. And while I am sad he is gone again, I am definitely enjoying the quiet time alone, and I have plenty to do to keep myself busy.

Remembering ... and celebrating.

These last couple days I've had so many thoughts running through my head it's hard to sit down and write any one of them out. Today is no different, but there are a few that come to the forefront.

First, today marks one year since my grandma - my mom's mom - died. That day was much like today - cold, but sunny and pretty. I remember because after standing vigil at her bedside around the clock for several days I had decided to finally go home, sleep in my bed, hug my kids, and get them off to school for a little sense of normalcy, then go back to be with grandma and my parents and aunt and uncle. About the time the sun was coming up on that Tuesday morning and I was saying goodbye to Sam and Rachel, grandma took her last breath. When my dad told me over the phone I was not sad that I wasn't there. I knew it could happen at any time and I was OK with that. I chose to go home to my kids that night because that's where grandma would have wanted me. There were so many times over the weeks before she died that she was in pain or tired and she would ask me about my kids. She'd tell me to go get them, go be with them. Because that was grandma: she would rather you focus your attention on someone else, even if she was the one in need.

When I finally did get to the rest home that day I kissed grandma's forehead, still warm, and reminded myself that her body was merely a vessel that had carried a precious spirit, a soul which I believe left this world long before her body gave up the fight.

She was my last remaining grandparent and I was honored to spend the last few months of her life helping to care for her. I miss her terribly. And tomorrow is my mom's birthday, which adds some level of weird emotion ... to want to celebrate life and allow ourselves to continue to grieve at the same time. Incidentally, my other grandma - my dad's mom - also died in February. It was 1995, I was a freshman in college, and I still miss her, too. My relationships with my two grandmas were different, but both very special. I am so fortunate, so blessed, to have had time to know each of them.

Today is also Ash Wednesday, which begins the season of Lent for Christians. I've written about that before, here. Last night the kids and I had a traditional Danish aebleskiver dinner with folks from church as our own way of celebrating "Fat Tuesday" and tonight I plan to attend the Ash Wednesday service. Which leads me to the third big thought in my brain today ... that Steve is on his way home for a few days' visit. I have a feeling the kids will want to hang out with him, or waiting for him, rather than take the time to go to church with me, and I'm OK with that. Spending time with daddy is important.

And besides, I'll have plenty of opportunity to get those little buggers into church over the next 40 days of the lenten season.

A prayer for today.

Heavenly Father, every day (OK, almost every day) when I put my children on the school bus I pray you will watch over them and keep them safe in Your loving embrace. I pray Sam and Rachel will be guided to make good decisions and glorify Your name with their actions, and that they would love You and seek to please You.

Today I pray extra fervently (is that even a word? How about "I pray really really hard?") for Your protection over my elder child, as he will be hitting the slopes this afternoon with the ski club. This is his second time skiing, but the first time he'll do it surrounded by a bunch of goony teenage guys. And Lord, we know how teenage boys can be. I pray he wears his helmet like he promised he would, that he doesn't get too cocky about his abilities, that he keeps his body intact and unbroken, and most of all that he have fun ... for himself, with his friends, away from my ever-watchful eyes. Lord, if it is Your Will, may Sam develop a love for this sport that will encourage him to do all the right things so he is allowed to continue to participate.

Please give me the strength, dear God, to let go just a little bit, let the boy seek his passion, prove himself to be responsible and trustworthy, and begin to find his place in this world. Help me to turn angst over possible future hurts to celebration over new discoveries and endless possibilities.

And did I mention I'd like You to bring him back to me in one piece?

Father, I also pray today that Steve has a good first day on the new job. I'm sure it will be filled with paperwork and instruction and drug testing and all that preliminary stuff, but as the ball begins to roll I ask You to stoke that fire within my husband that keeps him excited about what he does. I thank You for the gift of Steven, Lord. I thank You for placing him in my life. I thank You for getting him through yesterday's travels safely, and I ask You to continue to watch over him.

Thank You for the crunchy snow outside that sparkles in the light of the front porch.

Thank You for the one-on-one time I will have with Rachel this evening.

Thank You for a warm home, pancakes for breakfast, a truck that started right up this morning, four-legged creatures to keep me company today, and a body with working arms and legs and heart and brain that is capable of so much.

And thank You for coffee.

Amen.

Shitcanned.

I've had just over a day to process all this, so here it is.

Steve was fired. Let go. Cut loose.

Was it related to the economy? No. Work performance? Absolutely not.

Steve lost his job because of personal differences with the company's corporate blowhards. Because he is, in their words, a "disgruntled employee."

WHO DOES THAT?? What is this, the sixth grade?

Listen. We have a son who will turn 13 years old tomorrow. He's in middle school. Sam is at a point when we are teaching him it is a fact of life that he will encounter difficult people. That's just how the world works. We tell him it is his job to always handle himself appropriately and do his best to be kind and respectful to others, no matter how badly their personalities may clash. Sometimes it is helpful to simply walk away, but you can't always just gather up your toys and go home.

Unhappy relationships are tough, but even the best of relationships take work to maintain.

Steve has said working for this company is like being in a bad marriage; nobody communicates, and everybody blames someone else for any infraction.

My husband tried. For months he has set a positive example by going straight to the sources of gripes and grumbles and insisting on working through issues so everyone can move on. In his supervisory role he was probably too kind at times, giving second (or third or fourth) chances and plenty of corrective instruction in order to keep people working.

But he didn't buy into the corporate BS. He is a man of high morals and is driven by things far greater than money: Integrity. Kindness. Family. That's what I see. If you ask him? He was taught to do things the right way - to do the right thing - no matter who was or wasn't watching.

As it turns out, his former employer talks a great talk about putting people first, but their follow-through stinks. In fact, the company's motto is People first 24/7. In our house we've added to it a little: People first 24/7. Unless you're not the right people.

In an interesting twist, my brother worked for the same company, on the same crew as Steve. They fired him, too.

Oh yes they did.

WHO DOES THAT???

In the grand scheme of things we will come out on top. Today I am angry and feeling defensive, yes. (And if Steve wasn't disgruntled before, he sure is now!) Because in 17 years of working in the pipeline industry - and I mean working, putting pipe in the ground, operating equipment, not giving orders or pushing papers from an office - Steve has never come close to being fired. Ever. Has he butted heads with some higher-ups? Of course he has! That's life. The people who have to keep everything within budget and on deadline don't always see eye-to-eye with the folks who have to stand knee-deep in the mud with rain pouring down while they try to bail out the hole so they can work. That's just how it goes. But each has their job to do and most adults can learn to overlook their differences and work alongside each other toward a common goal.

So yeah. I'm pissed off that of all the crappy employees they could have chosen to weed out, they picked two of the best workers in the field. Apparently your work ethic means nothing if you refuse to drink the Kool-Aid.

Whatever. Life goes on. The natural gas industry is a great one to be in these days. Business is booming and it won't be long before both of these guys have settled into new jobs, hopefully far, far away from the corporate madness. The paychecks might be a little slimmer but as long as we can feed our family and keep the bills paid, we're good.

Yesterday I teetered briefly on the edge of madness just thinking about how we'll make it through the next few weeks. Between Steve having some time off between work projects, then coming home to be with his dad during brain surgery, and now being cut loose altogether, we are scraping the bottom of the barrel.

But then the phone started ringing ... friends sent messages of support ... prayer warriors added us to their lists ... and so many people we love collectively took my face in their hands and forced me to focus on what is important: Steve. Sam. Rachel. Me. Our faith. Our family and friends. We are warm and well fed, and we have much for which to be thankful. Praise God.

I'm no Pollyanna, but I can say with confidence today that I know everything will be OK.

Stopping the clock. For real.

I'm not sure I was even aware this clock I bought recently for the dining room had a glass face.





Stress the word had.

It fell off the wall last night as Steve brushed by. I think he barely bumped the wall.

That "CRASH!" and the sound of breaking glass? Yikes.

Fortunately no family members were injured; just the clock.

Oops.

Wouldn't it be nice if we could really stop the hands of time and just hang out here for a while? Well, I'd really like to get over this ugly cold (or whatever it is) that I have, but other than that I'm really enjoying these few days with my sweetie here. He'll be gone again before we know it, back to the daily grind. It makes me sad to think about him leaving in a couple of days, even though I knew it was inevitable.

Yes. Life - and time - goes on.

Even the poor clock is back up on the wall, minus the glass, but working like a charm. 

And because in my world a broken clock can never be just a broken clock, there must be some great life analogy here, right? Like ... it's just what we do: when we get knocked down we pick ourselves (or each other) up, repair what we can, discard what we can't, and keep on moving.

Happy Tuesday!

Ugh.

I've been sick. Bleh. Since Saturday afternoon when I came home from a workshop at church and crawled into bed intending to take a quick nap before heading to a wedding reception with the fam.

The clock kept ticking and Steve and the kids got ready and I couldn't drag myself out of bed. And then I got chills and just couldn't get warm enough. It went downhill from there.

I'm starting to come around this morning. I managed to finally get out of my pajamas and hit the shower, and my appetite is coming back.

I am really glad Steve has been here to help with the kids (though I'm pretty sure he's the one who shared his germs with me). It's been good to have him here, in general. We haven't been doing much of anything special - just running the kids around and eating dinners together at night and hanging out.

It feels good. Even if I don't.

A paradox.

Steve has some time off between projects, so he's home.

He's home!! Maybe for a week, maybe a little more or a little less.

The paradox? He's not making a paycheck when he's home ... but the fact that he is home is a good thing.

Despite the financial hiccup his time off might cause, these few days of having him here are an answer to my prayers. I've been having a rough time keeping the kids on the straight and narrow and it will be heavenly having Steve here for backup.

Not to mention, Steve has been working hard, sometimes seven days a week, for months. He needs a break. He needs to recharge.

We need to recharge.

I'm happy he's here.

Here we go AGAIN!

What a crazy few days it's been.

The kids and I went to visit Steve over the weekend which was absolutely wonderful because he was staying at a campground we are familiar with and we had a great time.

Sam found the new rope swing ...

Rachel was in heaven with the petting zoo barn cat's four new kittens (in addition to a mix of other animals including bunnies, baby goats, a deer and a pig) ...

And we saw one of the several peacocks all fanned out, which was absolutely enthralling ...

The crazy part was that we were hardly settled in before Steve told me he had arranged to go back to Pennsylvania to work, having reached his limit of frustration and micro-managing with his current employer. So Saturday - the next day - would be his last day.

Hhhhhhhhhh.

This was not exactly a surprise to me. I knew Steve had been unhappy with some recent developments on this job and I had encouraged him to hang in there as long as he could, which he did. I had also let him know, in essence, that quality of life is far more important than money or location.

Actually I believe my words were, "Whatever you need to do. You're no good to me if you're grumpy and depressed all the time!"

So on Sunday we all headed home. We got to spend some quality time together as a family, and Steve and I had a nice day together today when we took our travel trailer (Steve's home away from home) to the RV dealer to have an awning installed.

Somewhere in the meantime, plans changed from Steve going to PA to Steve heading to West Virginia. That's just how quickly things can change. And that's fine; it's all good. He leaves tomorrow after Sam and Rachel get on the school bus.

Tonight I've been trying to do all the "normal" school night stuff to help the kids get ready for another day while also helping Steve get ready to go, however I can. And it's a beautiful night - crickets chirping, frogs croaking, a cool breeze working on blowing a storm in, and the sky turned a glowing pink/orange as the sun went down. I stopped to admire the color and was surprised by a rainbow painted across the sky in front of our house. I hurried outside to take pictures and I could hardly get the whole expanse of it with my little camera.

This one is my favorite:

 I'll take this as a sign we're going in the right direction.

Road Trip!

I'm excited! Probably not as much as the kids, but pretty excited nonetheless.

I am picking Sam and Rachel up after school today and we're heading out to spend the weekend with Steve. He's been working a ridiculous number of hours and it sounds like he'll be working right through the weekend, so the only chance we have to see him at all is if we go to him.

We finally have a weekend when our only commitment isn't until Sunday afternoon, so we're seizing the opportunity to get away. The buckets of flowers and stack of lumber in the front yard will be waiting for me when we return. Projects can be taken on any day, but too many more days without seeing my sweetheart would make me pretty sad.

I've got a few last-minute things to do (including packing) before I go, so I better get to it. Have a great weekend!

Thirteen years.

Good morning! I hope all the mamas, aunties, Godmothers, caregivers (and the like) out there had a wonderful Mother's Day. I enjoyed a weekend full of surprises large and small which I meant to share with you last night until I got sidetracked doing something I was supposed to do earlier in the day. Oops. So that post got scrapped in favor of today's most important news in the Pipe Life household: it's our wedding anniversary.

Steve and I had so little time together over the weekend and we really wanted to see both our moms yesterday and we had other obligations to attend to, so we didn't get a chance to celebrate our anniversary at all. And of course today he is back to the daily grind. But rest assured, we will celebrate!

Thirteen years. Wow. Whoda thunk?

And what would an anniversary post be without a sappy tribute?

Because that's just my style. *grin*

He's a pretty awesome guy, that Steve.

And I am blessed to be able to call him mine.

Change? Bring it on ... in style.

This week has been a perfect example of how bizarre our life can be sometimes, and why being flexible with our schedule is a major key to keeping a grip on sanity.

Steve left Sunday evening to head back to the hotel where he has been staying during the work week, with a 6 a.m. meeting on his schedule for Monday morning. He knew he might be assigned to the night shift for a few days this week, so he anticipated perhaps a long day Monday trying to sleep as much as possible.

Well. He was scheduled for the night shift, but that wouldn't begin until Tuesday night. So he had the latter half of Monday and most of Tuesday to kill.

In the meantime Monday, my brother-in-law and I took a road trip to pick up the Pipe Lifers' new travel trailer.

I hate admitting this - because I don't like admitting I can't do some things - but I asked Steve's brother to go with me so he could drive my truck home with the trailer attached. I don't have much experience pulling trailers (OK, no experience pulling recreational vehicles) and Steve wasn't really keen on the idea of me earning my trucker hat with our brand new 31-foot trailer.

I didn't argue.

So we got the trailer safely home and parked in the yard, the kids promptly started messing with the entertainment system, and I began a mental list of all the items I would need to round up to outfit this baby. I had visions of adding a few touches of home here and there, considering this is where Steve would be living all summer.

Then the phone rang. It was Steve. "I'm on my way home."

Awwwww. I thought he wanted to sleep in his own bed before he started that night shift business. Maybe even take advantage of the extra hours off and hang out with moi.

Umm. No. Home boy spent three hours driving on $4.16/gallon gas to whisk his new trailer off in the middle of the night, check out of the hotel, and park at the campground where he had already reserved a site.

I think he's a little excited about this thing.

He ought to be. We've been looking and shopping and keeping our eyes peeled for a new (or at least new-to-us) trailer for at least a year. Steve is in this nomadic line of work for the long haul and having a comfortable place to go "home" to after work each day makes it a little easier to live apart from the rest of the family. If that's possible. And it will certainly make it more comfortable for all of us when the kids and I visit him in the summer.

So yeah, we need to be flexible alright.

*choke*

I'm gonna be flexing my Mad Budgeting Skilz muscles for a few years. But it's all good. I am so happy to see Steve excited about this. He works his tail off for our family and I'm happy to do my part to make it a little easier for him.

Oh, and that night shift gig? Lasted all of one night. He's working during daylight hours today. Go figure.

Here's a peek at the new digs:

It has everything that is important to us right now: Steve wanted the "living space" in the rear with plenty of room to chill and watch TV or play video games; I wanted room for the kids to each have a bed and for me and Steve to have the closest thing we could get to a (private) bedroom.

He's happy. I'm happy. Sam and Rachel are happy. I can't wait to spend some time in it with all of us together.

Come on, summer!

A new frontier.

After a month-long layoff Steve is heading back to work this week. This is a good thing; regular paychecks are much better than unemployment compensation. Still, I'm a little sad. I like having him around.

No, it's not just because he cooks. Though I will miss that, too.

Once Steve gets back to the grind it will likely be gangbusters through the summer, and that means we won't see much of him.

This is just another curve in the road of our lives. Just when we've gotten used to having daddy here with us day and night, he has to say goodbye and we are back to seeing him maybe one night a week. The kids and I will get used to the old routine again, and we will appreciate the time we get to spend with Steve when he comes home or we go to stay with him. We've been down this road before.

Steve and I had an interesting conversation today. Yes, we've been here before, but what's different this time is we are starting in a different place - a better place - financially than we usually do. Typically we're spread pretty thin by the time Steve goes back to work after a seasonal layoff. This time we're current on all the bills and we've even been able to make some extra payments to eliminate some debts. That feels pretty darn good. But on the flip side, I'm feeling comfortable enough that I'm not ready to send my sweetie off to work again.

I guess that's a pretty good problem to have.

So no, I'm not complaining for one second. We'll make the most of this unconventional living situation just like we always do. And I will continue to be thankful every day for the job my husband has been blessed with and the life, in turn, he is able to provide for our family.

It's all good.

As the Pipe Lifers' world turns ...

Today is Steve's last day of work for a while. A few weeks, maybe.

Hopefully only a few weeks.

As the weather warms up here in Michigan and things begin to thaw out, the ground turns to mush and that makes it difficult to get much work done with heavy equipment. Also, local municipalities enforce frost laws which limit speed and weight on roadways that could be damaged as the frost beneath the surface melts away. Another hindrance for moving large equipment around. So as spring approaches we've known it was a possibility Steve would have a little break from work, we just didn't know when it would happen.

I'm excited Steve will be around home for a bit. Financially it's always a struggle - or eventually becomes a struggle - when he is laid off, but as far as our family is concerned it's always a good thing to have us all living under the same roof.

That's how our world is turning today, and that's how we have learned to live - day to day, and sometimes hour by hour.